Rivermen duel with Columbus will center around goaltending

PEORIA -- The Peoria Rivermen and Columbus Cottonmouths are two of the hottest teams in the SPHL for the same reason as they collide for a two-game weekend set at Carver Arena.

Goaltending and more goaltending.

Columbus rides in on a 7-3-1 run in which it has allowed two goals or less four times while Andrew Loewen dominates in its net.

Loewen went 7-1-0 with a 2.26 goals-against and a .932 saves rate in January and was named SPHL Goaltender of Month this week.

His dominance is nothing new to Columbus, where he set SPHL all-time season records last season with a 1.74 goals-against and .945 saves rate.

"We've watched a lot of video of them this week, and you can see why they are winning," Rivermen head coach Jean-Guy Trudel said. "That is a well-coached team, they have a plan they are committed to.

"They have good offensive and defensive rotations, and they are getting great goaltending."

Ditto, Rivermen.

Peoria goaltender Kyle Rank rose to the No. 1 spot in the SPHL this week with a 2.05 goals-against and .933 saves rate.

He rolled through the league in January with a 1.63 goals-against and .946 saves rate that included three shutouts.

So the Rivermen come in Friday on an 8-3-1 run.

"We're very much the same," Trudel said. "We really like the goaltending and defense we've been getting, too. It should be a great duel this weekend."

TRICKLE UP, TRICKLE DOWN: The Rivermen signed Kevin McFarland on Thursday as emergency backup goaltender for the weekend.

His stay could go beyond that if rookie Eric Levine does not return from a call-up with CHL Quad City soon.

It's possible Levine could return Monday.

Calgary Flames goaltender Karri Ramo is out with a lower body injury in the NHL. The Flames called-up goaltender Joni Ortio from AHL farm Abbotsford.

Abbotsford, in turn, called-up goaltender Thomas Heemskerk from CHL Quad City to take Ortio's spot.

And Quad City filled its hole with Peoria's Levine.

The NHL heads onto its Winter Olympics break from Feb. 9-26. So it's possible all those moves could reverse themselves by Monday.

RIVER READINGS: Columbus lost 4-3 Thursday at Knoxville when goaltender Andrew Loewen was beaten on a penalty shot by Knoxville's Berkley Scott with 6 seconds left in the game. ... The Rivermen split a two-game road series at Columbus in late December, the latter game of which was a game loaded with aggressive physical play, some of which drew penalty calls, some of which didn't, but should have. Columbus carries three enforcers on its roster, while Peoria has none. The Rivermen are the least-penalized team in the SPHL, while Columbus is second-most. ... UnityPoint Health-Methodist is giving away 1,500 Rivermen ballcaps at Saturday's game.

Dave Eminian covers the Rivermen for the Journal Star. Reach him at 686-3206 or deminian@pjstar.com. Follow him on Twitter @icetimecleve.